Harry says he wants to reconcile, but William is reportedly unwilling to engage

What Harry said in GQ

Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, told GQ in a video interview that he wants to settle his differences with his father, King Charles III, and his brother, Prince William. The roughly 42-minute interview was recorded in New York in late September and released on Tuesday, 20 October 2026. Asked whether he grieves the broken relationships, Harry said yes, and he added that he wants them to work out.

Some people don't want it to work out. I want it to work out.

Harry also said that scars stay forever, but that he would encourage everyone to let go of the past. He told the magazine that he is in a much better psychological state than he was ten years ago, and that his father is doing better, without offering details about the cancer treatment Charles has received since 2024. He argued that the world already has enough drama, and that family quarrels should not add to it.

With everything else that's going on in the world, the most important thing is to reconcile. That's the key point.

A report from William's camp

The Daily Mirror, citing a source close to the Prince of Wales, reports that William cannot imagine repairing his relationship with his brother. According to that source, William remains deeply hurt by the many things the Duke of Sussex has said publicly about him and other family members. The source also said Harry had been advised in unequivocal terms to stop making public statements about deeply private matters. The source placed the week's focus on a State Visit, the 60th anniversary of the Aberfan disaster in Wales and upcoming royal tours. According to the source, responding to each new Harry interview is not what matters to the Prince and Princess of Wales or to the King and Queen.

Timing and the Sussex response

The interview was released while King Charles, Queen Camilla, William and the Princess of Wales were hosting the Sultan of Oman at Windsor. A spokesperson for the Sussexes said the remark about people who do not want things to work out referred to a general context, not to the family. The same spokesperson said the interview was not meant as a criticism of William or any other family member. According to the Daily Mail, the remark was read as a jab at William, and a source close to the Crown told the paper that royal circles were tired of Harry's constant public statements. Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace have stayed officially silent, according to SAPO.

Background to the estrangement

The brothers have been estranged since 2020, when Harry stepped back from his role as a working royal and moved to California with Meghan Markle. In his memoir Spare, Harry claimed that William knocked him to the floor during a row over Meghan's alleged behaviour, an account the Independent recalled. The family returned to the UK with Archie, seven, and Lilibet, five, in late August, although one Independent report gave September. Harry said the move was for opportunities and family, and so the children could attend a British school, which they had done for two weeks. According to the Independent, Harry remains in contact with the King, while the Daily Mail, cited by SAPO, reported that he has not spoken to William in four years. Harry also spoke of years of psychotherapy after his mother, Diana, died in a car crash in Paris in 1997, when he was 12.